IN
THE
WIND
P44
MARQUEZ GOES UNDER THE KNIFE
N
ew World Champion Marc Marquez is due to have surgery on his
oft-dislocated left shoulder in early December, giving him the full
six weeks recovery time before testing begins for next year.
The joint popped out after a not especially vigorous congratulatory
hug from former Moto2 rival Scott Redding on the slow-down lap after
he had secured his fifth MotoGP title at Motegi, but was immediately
relocated by his brother and a friend, who had been waiting trackside.
It was, Marquez said, a regular event, that now needs to be fixed.
It had also happened in practice at the British GP in 2013, "and many
times when I am training."
Michael Scott
Marc Marquez will finally get his pesky
shoulder fixed in the off-season.
causing problems for all and con-
tributing to crashes for some.
Eventually Jules Cluzel (NRT
Yamaha) would have his second
crash of a drama-laden race
shortly after exiting that wet
section on the final lap, chasing
down his already lost chances of
overhauling Cortese and winning
the title himself.
Such was the occasional feroc-
ity of the eventual fight out front
between Cortese and Cluzel that
they ran each other wide, and
Mahias nipped through to pass
and take a lead he was never to
relinquish.
His third race win of the year
would actually take him to the
season runner-up spot. Cluzel's
first fall put him out of conten-
tion for the championship but his
second crash was a big highside,
and he smashed his ankle and
foot, no-scoring and dropping to
third in the final points.
With Mahias the winner in Qa-
tar, Cortese second and Federico
Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha) third,
it was the usual Yamaha fest
behind, too.
Thomas Gradinger (NRT
Yamaha) was fourth, Randy
Krummenacher (Bardahl Evans
Bros. Yamaha) fifth and Corentin
Perolari (GMT 94 Yamaha) sixth.
The first non-Yamaha was
Hector Barbera's Kawasaki Puc-
cetti Racing ZX-6R, and the best
MV belonged to Raffaele De
Rosa, in eighth.
Gordon Ritchie
WORLDSBK
1. Jonathan Rea (Kaw)
2. Tom Sykes (Kaw)
3. Alex Lowes (Yam)
4. Eugene Laverty (Apr)
5. Marco Melandri (Duc)
WORLDSSP
1. Lucas Mahias (Yam)
2. Sandro Cortese (Yam)
3. Federico Caricasulo (Yam)
4. Thomas Gradinger (Yam)
5. Randy Krummenacher (Yam)
Sandro Cortese
might've lost the battle
at Qatar but he won the
war, taking the 2018
WorldSSP crown.
